Smokeless-powder dynamite



Patented Mar. 6, 1923.

T OFFEC.

LINWOOD H. JONES, OF KENVIL, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO HERCULES POWDER COMPANY, OF WILMINGTON, DELAWARE, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

SMOKELESS-P OWDER DYNAMITE.

NoDrawing. Application filed May 24,

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, Lmwooo H. Jonas, a citizen of the United States, residing at Kenvil, county of Morris, and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and useful 1mprovement in Smokeless-Powder Dynamite, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to an improved explosive which will be safe, relatively nonfreezable, and highly efficient for blasting and other purposes.

Since the termination of the World Var, there has been obtainable, from surplus stocks accumulated for war purposes, large quantities of smokeless powder at a cost considerably below the cost of production.

Such smokeless powder in its present form has no present utility for commercial use, since it is of a character useful primarily as a propellant. The powder in its present form is also more or less dangerous to handle and cannot be effectively controlled for ordinary use and transportation.

Various attempts have recently been made.

, to modify smokeless powder to make it available for commercial use and numerous patents have recently issued along this line. However, the results have not been entirely satisfactory, since in modifying the powder for some beneficial result, other and deleterious effects have resulted. For example, in modifying the powder for greater safety, usually accomplished by the addition of water, while greater safety has been effected, at the same time power and sensitiveness have been sacrificed. Thus, while smokeless powder has been successfully modified for commercial use, results from a practical standpoint have not been entirely satisfactory.

It is the object of my invention to produce an explosive which will utilize, as an ingredient, ordinary smokeless gun powder, which at the same time will be safe to use and transport, and which can be made of desirable strength and sensitiveness. I also aim to produce an explosive which will be dry and non-balling, which will not freeze, and which may be readily loaded into car -,.tridges or bore holes.

A dry explosive made in accordance with my invention ordinarily will be composed 1922. Serial No. 563,376.

of finely ground dry smokeless powder, a dry nitrate, as sodium or ammonium nitrate, or a mixture thereof, and a small quantity of ,nitroglycerine. There may he added to the explosive small quantities of wood pulp, corn meal and chalk, and, if de-' sirable, some of the smokeless powder may be replaced by trinitrotoluol.

In referring to the smokeless powder and nitrates as dry, I mean smokeless powder with about two per cent and nitrates containing not over one per cent of moisture, and in referring to my improved explosive as dry I mean an explosive containing not over two and one-half per cent of moisture and preferably one containing less than one per cent of moisture.

As typical formulae of various explosives produced in accordance with my invention,

I may mix the following ingredients in the following proportions:

- Examples.

Ground smokeless powder 20% to 56% 25% 50% 42% Sodium nitrate 0% to 48.5% 48. 5% 23% Ammonium nitrate 0% to 74% 74% 34% Chalk l l). 5% Nitroglycerine to 2% 1% 1. 0% 1% 10091 100. 0% 100% Water 25% to 2% l 50 .50% 50% The smokeless powder and nitrates should preferably not contain substantially over 0.5% of moisture and the nitroglycerine should preferably not contain substantially over one per cent moisture. The resultant. explosive will be found to contain about .5176 of moisture.

In the above examples, the nitroglyccrinc is primarily included for the purpose of agglutinating any smokeless powder and nitrate dust which may be present and thus insure against premature explosion and at the same time insure regulatable detonation. The nitroglycerine serves to somewhatincrease the sensitiveness of the explosive, but it will be appreciated that it is used in such small quantity as not to be a material factor. nor will it materially affect either the powder or the nitrate. 1

The explosive may be readily regulated, in intensity and sensiti\"eness,'by varying the proportions of the nitrates as between themselves and at the same time decreasing or increasing the amount of smokeless pow- Ground smokeless powder Sodium nitrate 0% Lo 4( Ammonium nitrate i3 Trinitrotoluol 1% to l Nitroglyccrine 25% to 23, Wood pulp Water 25% to 2% .50%

It will now be observed that the explosive in accordance with my invention is substan tially dry, containing preferably less than one per cent of moisture, and further that the nitroglycerine content is kept very low,

being preferably not in excess of one per cent.

I having found that if the moisture content of the explosive be kept low, its ciliciency and sensitiveness is high without the addition of a material amount of a sensitizing agent, and if just enough nitroglycerinc be added to agglutinate the dust of the ingredients present the explosive may be transported and handled with substantial safety. At the same time, the low moisture. content and low nitroglycerine content render the explosive free running and non-balling and insure against freezing.

Having now fully describedmy invention. what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder, a nitrate, and nitroglycerine in an amount not in excess of two per cent said explosive con taining not over 2.5% moisture.

2. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder, a nitrate, nitroglycerine, and moisture between .25 and 2.5%.

3. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder, a ninitrate, nitroglycerine approximately one per cent, and moisture approximately 0.5%.

4. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder, a nitrate, nitroglycerine from 0.5% to 2%, trini' trotoluol, and moisture between .257 and 2.5%.

A 5. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder, a nitrate, nitroglycer'ine approximately L7,), and moisture between 25% and 2.5%).

6. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder, a nitrate, nitroglycerine from 0.5% to 2.0%, trinitrot'oluol in an amount not substantially in excess of the amount of smokeless powder, and moisture between 25% and 2.5%.

7. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder containing about 0.5% moisture, a nitrate containing about 0.5% moisture, and nitroglycerine containing about 1.0% moisture.

8. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder, sodium nitrate, ammonium nitrate, nitroglycerine from 0.5% to 2.0%, and moisture from 25% and 2.5%.

9. An explosive composition containing in admixture ground smokeless powder. sodium nitrate, ammonium nitrate, nitroglycerine from 0.570 to 2.0%, trinitrotoluol, and moisture between 25% and 2.5 /1..

. In testimony of which invention. l have hereunto set my hand, at Kenvil, N. J., on

' this 20th day of May, 1922. 

